MADISON COUNTY, Ky. (LEX 18) — A worker at a Richmond daycare has been arrested and is facing several child abuse charges, according to three arrest citations.
According to the citation, 25-year-old Elizabeth Thomas was interviewed by police on April 4 regarding allegations against her.
The citation states that Thomas "admitted to often losing her temper while working at A Step Ahead Daycare and would grab the children by their arms."
On March 20, according to the citation, another worker reportedly told police they witnessed her grab a child that was "spitting on other children," pull them across the room, and begin yelling in their face then "simulate spitting."
Further, police noted in the citation that they responded to a home about a "child abuse complaint," matching the details of the incident.
According to the citation, in the police interview, Thomas admitted that on March 20, during her class's nap time, "one of the children did not want to go down for a nap," so she grabbed them by the arm and threw them onto a cot. As a result, the citation states that Thomas told police that the child started crying, so "she held him down on the cot, wrapping him in a blanket, and hitting his back repeatedly."
Thomas told police in the interview, according to the citation, that "she had been given a write-up at that same daycare" for a similar incident.
According to the citation, Thomas was accused of telling a child who required a doctor-approved special diet "to eat the food that was provided by the daycare and only then could they have what was packed by their parents." A witness told police, according to the citation, that the child "would not eat because of the refusal to provide the special packed lunch."
Thomas was arrested on April 7 and booked in the Madison County Detention Center, according to the citation.
She is charged with three counts of first-degree criminal abuse- child 12 or under and one count of fourth-degree assault (child abuse).
